


Alt Er Love Part 1: Jin Hú

by TheAwkwardOne6



Series: Alt Er Love (SKAM Atla) [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Azula (Avatar) Needs a Hug, Badass Katara (Avatar), F/M, Fluff, Gen, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Rarepair, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck, implied/referenced eating disorder, nothing explicit tho
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:41:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27681629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheAwkwardOne6/pseuds/TheAwkwardOne6
Summary: Jin lost everything. Her friends, her social status, and herself. And now she’s losing even more.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Just a SKAM AU I thought would be fun to make 😊
Relationships: Haru/Jin (Avatar), Jet/Ty Lee (Avatar) brief/mentioned, Jin & Katara (Avatar), Jin & Original Female Character(s) (Avatar), Jin & Suki (Avatar), Jin & Ty Lee (Avatar), Jin & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Alt Er Love (SKAM Atla) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024249
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9





	1. You Look Like a Slut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru wrote an essay, and Jin listens to it. Zuko is their third wheel. Jin goes to a party.

_Tuesday September 22 (2.32PM): Our Fault_

“Is it good?” Haru asked, looking up from his essay. 

Jin nodded. “It was really good!”

“Okay!” He snuggled next to her on the bench. “What about the title? Should I change it to _Working Conditions are Inhumane_?”

“No,” she turned to look at him. “It’s good the way it is.”

“Yeah?” He looked back at it. “Is there anything else you thought of?”

“Umm…” she bit her lip and pointed to a spot in the essay. “You know, you wrote _gorge on cheap food_ twice in a row?”

“Yes?”

“Maybe you should change that,” she suggested. 

“No, no, I meant to write it twice,” Haru explained. “Because I use repetition as a literary tool to emphasize—“

Jin stopped listening when she heard a laugh that made her heart drop. She looked up and saw Azula walking with her new friend group, one that excluded her, and was giggling. Azula noticed her staring and rolled her eyes, turning to her friends to make a nasty comment. Jin’s heart dropped and she looked down. 

“Was it good?” Haru asked once more. 

She nodded, not really paying attention. “Yeah, that was good. Cleverly written.”

Haru noticed her vacant expression and looked up to see Azula walking by with a group of her friends. She turned to look at Jin and rolled her eyes. He frowned and stroked his fingers through Jin’s hair and pulled her in for a kiss. 

At least he would have if a piece of paper didn’t fall between their lips and a certain Zuko Nakao didn’t sit them. “Hey! I got a 100.”

“A+?” Haru looked impressed and hi fived his friend. “Awesome. I got a 98.”

“Nice.” Zuko gave him a high five. 

Jin didn’t look at her friend. “I’d rather not talk about it.”

“The thing is, Haru is your boyfriend so you have to tell him everything—“ Zuko began. “And Haru is my best friend, so he has to tell me everything, so I’ll know anyway.”

Haru chuckled a little. “It’s true.”

Jin dramatically rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine. I got a 66.”

Haru made a face. “You got a 66? That’s… bad.”

She looked down. 

“It’s okay!” He smiled. “You're good at a lot of other things.”

“Yeah,” Zuko nodded. “You’re able to dress yourself, you can brush your teeth by yourself. Think of that.”

Jin smiled and playfully stuck up her middle finger at him. 

Haru laughed and pulled her in for a kiss. 

Zuko frowned and tapped him on the shoulder. “Haru we’re leaving.”

“Right now?”

“Yep,” he said. 

“Where are you going?” Jin asked. 

“To Ruon-Jian’s,” Haru explained and kissed her once more. “I’ll call you later.”

“Okayyy,” she kissed him again. 

Jin sat there for a second, watching them leave, until suddenly she was alone. She got up and started walking away. 

* * *

_Tuesday September 22 (8.32PM): Don't You Trust Me?)_

All her stuff pulled out, Jin began flipping through a paper, biting her lip before looking at the 33% marking on her test. 

A google document on her computer was open and she was ready to write her essay, but she couldn’t form the right words. 

_Calling Haru_

_This number cannot be reached—_

Jin groaned and hung up, then went onto Instagram—Azula’s account. There was a picture of her with some other girl that Jin didn’t know the name of. Then Zuko sent her a gif, so she looked at it. 

It was of a little kitten sitting up, pawing at the camera. It made her smile. She went to his contact info and face timed him. 

“Hello!”

“Heyyy,” she smiled. 

Zuko smiled back, his hair falling in his face where the scar on his eye was. “What’s up?”

“Nothing special,” Jin replied. “Are you with Haru?”

“No, not now,” he said. 

She furrowed her eyebrows. “Weren’t you going to Ruon-Jian’s?”

“Yeah but that was a few hours ago.”

“Oh,” she sat back. “Did you see Azula’s picture? I think she has fake eyelashes.”

“No,” he snorted. 

“Yeah I saw her picture on Instagram.”

“I see her everyday. She’s my sister, remember?”

“Oh right. Does she?”

“I don’t think so,” he laughed a little. 

Jin smiled a bit wistfully. 

“You know you can talk to her, right?” Zuko asked. “She won’t bite. Maybe. Actually, no, she might…”

She was startled by a knocking on her window and she turned to see her boyfriend. “Haru is here. I have to go.”

“What are you going to do?”

She just wiggled her eyebrows and hung up before going to let him in by opening the window. She immediately grinned and kissed him. Then she pulled away. “I tried to call you, but you never answered your phone.”

“Yeah, my battery was dead,” he replied. 

“Can’t you just charge it at home?” She asked. 

He shook his head. “I wasn’t at home.”

“Where were you then?””

“I was at Ruon-Jian’s.”

“Until now?” Her face expressed confusion and suspicion. 

“Yeah.” He said, taking off his jacket. 

“But I talked to Zuko,” she said. “He said you left there hours ago.”

“Why so many questions?” He chuckled. “He left, I stayed.”

Jin sighed. 

“Don’t you trust me?” Haru smiled and pulled her close to him and kissed her forehead. “Why don’t you trust me, huh?”

She gasped when he picked her up and plopped her on her bed, then kissed him. 

“You’re heavy,” he mumbled. 

“You’re crazy!”

He then saw her test and frowned. “33? You said you got a 66.”

“It’s almost the same,” she said. 

_“Whoever was expelled-”_ He began as Jin started trying to snatch the paper. 

“Haru!”

 _“-must be blamed for their behavior. In psychology as well as-“_ she pushed him to try to get the paper. 

“Haruuu!”

 _“…a guilt a state one experiences.”_

She finally snatched it away from him. 

_“A state one experiences_? That was really sweet,” he leaned in to kiss her but she pushed him away. 

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“A kiss!” He grinned and pressed their lips together. 

He stroked her hair. “A state one experiences!”

“Shut up!” She threw her pillow at him. 

He fell down laughing on her bed and she sat up, kissing him. 

* * *

_Wednesday September 23 (11:51am): Warm welcome_

Jin sat in class, headphones in her ears as she worked on her next paper in a notebook. 

“What’s your name?”

“Azula!” She snapped her head to the voice. 

“Are you guys in the same class?” She heard a girl ask. 

“Yep,” Azula replied. 

A group of girls were gathered standing around a table, Azula and Mai sitting down. Jin tried not to watch them, but her eyes glanced up every once and a while. 

“Ehh, could I sit here?” A different girl’s voice asked. 

Jin turned to look at her. 

She was wearing a tan colored hijab that wrapped around her neck once, the second tail over her shoulder. Her skin was a light brown and she wore glasses. She had a beauty mark on her cheek. 

“Yes,” she said and gestured to the seat across from her. 

She smiled in thanks and pulled the seat out, placing her backpack down next to her and sat in it. Jin turned back to her work. 

“Hey can we talk to you for a minute?” Another girl walked up to Jin, a boy behind her. They were holding a clipboard. “We’re helping tutor some students after school.”

“Um… actually I'd need tutoring myself,” Jin replied. 

“Please? You can help in any way you can, whichever subject your best at,” a boy said. 

“Okay, I’ll think about it.”

He dug into his bag and pulled out a flyer. “Here. It says when we meet and has our email on it.”

The girl was resting her chin on her fist and smiling. When they turned to go, she slightly sat up. “Could I have a flyer too?”

The two people stared at her in awkward silence before turning to look at each other. 

“Uhh, yes, sorry,” the boy handed her one. 

The girl smirked a little. “Nevermind. It’s okay.”

“We’re meeting Friday at the revue party. Will you two be there?” The girl with the flyer asked. 

“Yeah, maybe,” Jin said, looking at the piece of paper. 

The boy gave a thumbs up. “Cool. Also, sorry again.”

Then the two turned to go. 

The girl from the table laughed as she put the flyer into her bag. “Those guys were so funny.”

Jin smiled slightly, and the two girls went back to their work. 

* * *

_Thursday September 24 (2:35pm): Lonely, together, threesome_

“I mean, it could be quite good,” Jin said, walking home from school hand-in-hand with her boyfriend. 

Haru chuckled. “C’mon, quite good?”

“Please?” She begged. “I don’t want to go there by myself."

“Okay, I’m im,” he agreed. “But only if Zuko can come with us when we go to the cabin.”

That made Jin stop walking. 

“Otherwise he’ll be alone with his father for the holidays,” Haru said. “You can bring a friend too.”

Jin knew that Zuko’s father wasn’t the best. She also knew there were things that Haru and Zuko wouldn’t tell her. 

“It would make Zuko super happy!” He tried. 

Jin sighed. “Okay.”

“Does that mean he can come?” Haru grinned. 

“Yeah.”

He pumped his fist. “Yes!”

“‘Zuko can come—,’” Zuko put his arms around both Haru and Jin. “Does that mean I can join your love nest?”

“One condition, the two of you join me at the revue party Friday,” Jin told him. 

“I can’t, there’s a concert Friday,” Zuko told her. 

“Fuck, I totally forgot!” Haru said. “I-I’m so sorry.”

Jin closed her eyes. “Can’t you come afterwards?”

“No, the concert starts at 10 and it’s on the other side of the city…” he started. 

Her heart pounded in anger as she grabbed the traps of her backpack and started walking off. 

“Wait a second!” Haru said, but she didn’t stop. He ran after her. 

* * *

_Friday September 25 (7.37PM): Slut_

Sitting in her room while eating soup, Jin watched an episode of Dr. Phil on her computer. She noticed an Instagram notification on her phone and went to look. 

It was a picture of Azula and Mai, plus a girl tagged as Ty Lee Jiǎng. Jin’s heart sunk as she remembered what happened. 

She looked away and focused on the show, but her eyes glanced up at a picture of her, Azula, and Mai on the wall. Back when they were all just friends. 

Jin had to make this right. She closed the computer. 

She pulled out her clothes and started changing, after being distracted by the stash of alcohol she had hidden. She did her eyeliner, accidentally messing it up a little bit, and put stockings on. Then she drank another sip of the wine. She put black eyeshadow on, smearing it with her finger a little, then blush. She then let her hair loose and started brushing it. 

After checking herself out in the mirror, Jin grinned at herself, feeling beautiful for once. She walked out of the door. 

* * *

She walked back in and fixed the back of her skirt that was stuck under the stockings. 

* * *

The party was not only loud, but crowded. Jin felt a little overwhelmed, especially after Zuko and Haru totally abandoned her. 

She looked around, trying to find Azula. She noticed the Muslim girl who sat with her Wednesday holding a water bottle. She smiled slightly and walked past. 

Not seeing Azula anywhere, Jin started to awkwardly dance to the music a little bit. Then—she saw her. 

Azula walked over to the bar and sat down, then Mai went away to go do something. 

Jin walked over to where she was sitting. 

Azula noticed her and glared before looking away. 

“You can’t ignore me forever,” Jin began. “We have to talk eventually.”

Azula looked back at her, and for a moment Jin thought she would say something. But she didn’t, just looked at her. 

“Azula please, I miss you!” Jin cried. “Say something, anything! Please!”

Azula purses her lips before replying. “I would’ve lost the eyeliner if I were you. You look like a slut.”

Then she left. 

“See seemed cool,” a girl’s voice said. Jin turned to look at her. She had dark brown skin and long brown hair tied in a bun. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of brown and she was beautiful. Her shirt was light blue and she wore jeans. “I think we have Spanish together. I’m Katara.”

“Jin.”

Katara smiled at her. “Girls who call each other sluts have a 90% higher risk of getting chlamydia.”

“Seriously?” Jin asked. 

“No,” Katara shook her head. “But it would’ve been very cool if it were true.”

Jin smiled before the other girl walked off. She went to the bathroom and started wiping her eyeliner off with a wet paper towel. That was when she heard the sniffling. 

She put the towel down and followed the sound, seeing a girl in the sink next to her crying. She had light brown hair in a braid and was wearing a pink crop top. 

“Are you okay?” Jin asked. 

The girl nodded. “Yes.”

That was when she started crying harder. 

“Are you sure?” The girls turned, wiping her tears with a paper towel. “Maybe I could get a friend of yours?”

“Maybe… Suki Nakamura?” She mumbled. 

“Okay,” Jin said. 

She walked out and started asking around for a Suki Nakamura. No one knew who that was, but they pointed her to a boy named Chan Nakamura. Jin assumed she must’ve heard the name wrong. 

She went up to the boy and tapped him on the shoulder. “A friend of yours is crying and is looking for you.”

He nodded and started following her. 

“It was $40,000. I don’t have that much money!” The girl said. 

“It was toilet paper, Ty Lee! Toilet paper! It’s not so bad,” a female voice replied. 

She was wearing a baseball cap and had her jaw length hair pulled back into a ponytail (at least the front bit). 

“We can’t use that much toilet paper,” Ty Lee replied. 

“Um, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I got your friend for you,” Jin said. 

Chan looked around for a minute, then awkwardly smiled. “Here I am!”

There was a slightly awkward silence. 

“This is Suki Nakamura,” Ty Lee pointed. 

“I’m Suki Nakamura,” she immediately replied, looking at the boy. 

His eyes widened. “Your last name is also Nakamura?”

“Oh my God!” She grinned. “Twin names!”

“Twin names!” They both hi-fived and had a Bro-hug. 

When they realized the awkwardness in the room, they stopped. 

Ty Lee but her lip. “We were actually in the middle of something.”

“Yes, of course,” Jin awkwardly walked away, grabbing Chan with her. “C’mon, we’re leaving.”

“What’s up? Weren’t we going to talk? Where are you going?” Jin rolled her eyes at the boy. “Hey, don’t be such a dick tease!” 

She left the building and started walking home. 


	2. Haru, This is Completely Stupid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru and Jin go to the cabin. Their romantic getaway is interrupted. Everyone thinks Zuko is gay.

_ Sunday September 27 (3.18PM): Stuck _

Jin sat in the living room, using Instagram on her computer. She typed “Katara Ayagalria” into search, and saw a picture of the girl from the party. Her account was set to private, so she sent a request to follow her. 

Her phone started ringing and she noticed it was her mother calling her. She quickly answered it. “Hi!”

“Hi dear,” her mother replied. 

“Are you in Toronto now?” She asked. 

“No, my flight from the USA got canceled so I’m stuck here until tomorrow,” her mom replied. 

“No!” Jin mumbled. 

“But!” Her mom said. “I’ll be in Toronto tomorrow afternoon.”

“But I’m going to the cabin tomorrow,” Jin said, disappointment evident in her voice. 

“Oh yeah! Where were you going again?”

“To Azula’s cabin with her and Mai,” she said. 

She could tell her mom was smiling. “Aww, how nice. Who’s driving you?”

“We’re taking the bus.”

“The bus? Can’t you wait? On Tuesday I can drive you.”

“But…” Jin’s heart sank. “I’ve been looking forward to going to the cabin for over a month now.”

“Yes, I know…” her mom replied. 

“But… I’m coming home on Saturday.”

Her mother sighed. “Yeah… on Saturday… it looks like I’ll have to leave again on Friday night.”

“Oh.”

“Do you have enough money?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll wire you a little bit extra, so you can enjoy yourselves on the cabin trip.”

Jin smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Say hello to Azula and Mai for me!”

“I will. I love you.”

“I love you too honey.”

She smiled and hung up. 

Jin began packing her bags, putting clothes into a suitcase and a few books to read. She grabbed a few condoms and stuffed them into her bag. 

* * *

_ Sunday September 27 (9.04AM): I feel lonely  _

Jin woke up to her boyfriend gently combing his fingers through her hair. She shifted and pressed her nose against his, smiling slightly. 

She groaned and rolled over. “Why did you make me drink that thing last night?”

Haru laughed. “I dunno.”

She smiled and rubbed their noses together. He kissed her, and she grabbed his neck to pull him in more. He rolled them over, which made her squeal and wrap her arms around his neck. She crawled on top of him and started kissing him more, and he started to pull her shirt up. 

“Hi,” Zuko said and they both turned to look at their friend who had crawled up the stairs. 

“Go away!” Jin squeaked and threw a pillow at him. 

He caught it and started walking up. “I’m bored, can you come down?”

Haru sighed. “Morning.”

He grabbed a hair tie and quickly put his long brown brown hair into a bun. 

“Will you make me coffee? I don’t understand this GDR-Machine,” Zuko said, leaning against the opening of the loft and the stairs. 

Jin rolled her eyes. “There is no GDR-Machine.”

Zuko threw her the pillow and she caught it. 

“I’m making you a large pot with quite a lot of milk, okay little one?” Haru asked, giving Zuko a boop on the nose. 

“Thanks mom,” he smiled. 

Haru groaned and followed him down the stairs. “Why did you spread terror so early?”

Jin heard Haru’s phone buzz and she looked at the text. 

_ From Azula.  _

“This one? What did you do with the coffee machine?” She could hear Haru say in the background. 

They started laughing. 

* * *

_ Wednesday September 30 (8.32PM): Do you know something? _

Jin, Zuko, and Haru were sitting by the lake, a blanket sprawled underneath them. They all were also wrapped in their own individual blankets. Drinks and food surrounded them, and Haru was strumming his ukulele and humming. 

“Hey dude, play something by Sam Smith,” Zuko requested. 

Haru sighed and sat up. “Dude, you honestly just know gay songs, don’t you?”

“Uh, yeah. So what?” He took a sip of beer. 

Haru’s phone went off and he picked it up. 

“Who are you texting?” Jin asked. 

He got up and sat up. “Uhm, Ruon-Jian.”

“Your new girlfriend?” Zuko teased. 

Haru stood up. “I’m going to take a piss.”

Zuko mimed talking on a phone.  _ “Hello Ruon-Jian? I think I’m in love with you! Let’s go somewhere, and we can be together forever!” _

He started laughing and took a bite of his food. 

Jin looked back at her boyfriend, then at Zuko. “Do you know why Haru and Azula are texting?”

“Where is Azula coming from all of a sudden?” He asked, taking another bite of food. 

She shivered from the cold. “I saw a message on his phone.”

“No idea,” he moved away from her and laid fully down. 

“Come on, she’s your sister,” Jin pleaded. Then she saw the look on his face. “You know something.”

“They just text from time to time. That’s all I know though,” he told her. 

Haru came running back and sat down in his place again, picking up his ukulele.  _ “Oh won’t you stay with me?” _

_ “Cuz you’re all I need,” _ Zuko sang along, looking into Haru’s eyes as he smiled. 

Jin looked down. 

_ “It’s clear to see, darling, stay with me…”  _

* * *

_ Saturday October 1 (5.32PM): What the fuck was that?) _

Jin was reading a book in the living room as the boys said “cheers” and each took a sip of their beer. Zuko rolled the dice, which landed on 1. 

“Now here’s the 1 million punches in your face if you don’t know it, question,” Haru began. “What do the Japanese call their country?”

“Haha, very funny,” Zuko rolled his eyes. “Nippon.”

“You’re correct.”

Jin got onto the internet and googled “politics and history.”

“Jin,” Haru began. “Which Canadian Prime Minister was in office from 1984–1993?”

“I’m not playing.”

“She doesn’t know,” Haru whispered to Zuko who snickered. 

She glared at them. “I didn’t even listen to the question.”

“Which Canadian Prime Minister was in office from 1984–1993?” He repeated. 

She thought for a moment. “Arthur Meighen?”

The boys looked at each other before bursting into laughter. 

“Fuck you guys,” She turned to face the wall. 

“What’s up?” Haru asked, sitting next to her but she shoved him away. 

“I don’t want to play Trivia,” she replied. 

“Then what do you want to play?” He asked. 

Jin sat up. “How about ‘my ship is loaded with’?” 

“Sounds good.”

“Alright, I’ll start,” she glared at him. “My ship is loaded with Azula.”

Haru was quiet for a second. “My ship is loaded with Arthur Meighen.”

Him and Zuko started snickering but Jin glared at him. 

“Okay, um, my ship is loaded with ants.”

“My ship is loaded with adidas,” Zuko said. 

“My ship is loaded with—“ 

There was a loud bang on the door. 

“What the fuck was that?” Jin exclaimed. 

Haru started walking outside, and it was eerily quiet. Suddenly, a boy jumped out. 

“Ruon-Jian!” Haru exclaimed. 

“Haru!” He gave him a huge bro-hug. “What’s up?”

“You came?”

Zuko walked with Jin, watching the two boys. 

“Of course I came,” he said. “When I say I’m coming, I’ll do it.”

“How did you find the way?” Haru asked him. 

He smirked. “Embedded a GPS in my brain, man. Nah, I asked a guy in the parking space up there.”

“Ohh.”

Ruon-Jian stepped back, looking at Jin and Zuko. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Zuko replied. They high fived and had a side hug, but Zuko was looking down. 

“Is this where you guys hang? Really cool. Good atmosphere, at least. It’ll be a party.”

Neither Zuko nor Jin looked happy. 

“Where am I sleeping?”

“In the inner bedroom, with Zuko,” Haru replied. 

“Am I sleeping with the gay guy?”

Zuko didn’t look at him. “Why is everyone calling me gay?”

“You are gay,” he walked into the cabin without acknowledging Jin. 

Zuko and Jin both glared at Haru. 

“He’s kidding. Have a sense of humor,” he defended. 

Zuko walked into the cabin without replying, and Jin stayed to look at Haru angrily. 

“What? He asked if he could come. What should I have said?”

Jin opened her mouth, before shutting it and walking right back into the cabin. 

* * *

_ Friday October 2 (7.04PM): It’s a party _

Haru and Jin were in the kitchen, Haru chopping onions and Hin washing the dishes.

He sniffed. “Uh, what was that life hack for not crying again?”

“Not being an asshole,” she replied without looking up. 

“What?” He watched his girlfriend sniff a little from the onions. “What’s the matter?” 

She didn’t reply. 

“Hey, I have some greens,” Ruon-Jian called. 

“Nice,” Haru said, walking out of the kitchen and into the living room. 

“Wanna blaze one?”

“Yeah, sure,” Zuko said, taking one of the joints into his hand. Haru took another. 

“You don’t smoke,” Jin told her boyfriend, confused. 

Ruon-Jian grinned. “It’s a party!”

They were out the door before she could reply. 

Once she had finished cooking dinner, Jin opened the door. “Boys, dinner!”

She stopped suddenly, realizing she sounded like a housewife from the ‘50s. 

They didn’t reply, so she opened her phone as a flashlight, slipped her shoes on, and went outside. “Haru? Zuko? Hello?”

She took a deep sigh.    
  


Jin got out her dinner and began eating alone when the boys finally walked back into the cabin, talking amongst themselves.

“Nice,” she heard one of them say, not paying attention to who. “Nice, man.”

“Where have you guys been?” She asked. 

“Well, let’s put it this way,” Haru tossed his scarf onto the couch. “Your grandmother’s lake is not a virgin anymore.”

“Jin, you know bucket smoking,” Zuko put a plastic bottle on the floor. noticed the food on the table in front of her. “Oh, the food looks delicious.”

Zuko made a plate of spaghetti. Jin glared at Haru. 

“Don’t be such a drama queen,” he commented. “You’re always acting as if it were crack.”

“Don’t act like it’s nothing,” she said. 

“It’s less harmful than alcohol,” Zuko said with his mouth full of spaghetti (without any sauce). 

They all chuckled (except for Jin). 

“Exactly,” Haru said. “You don’t need to hold my hair because I smoked pot 24 hours ago.”

Jin stood up and walked away from the table, taking her food with her. 

“Wait a second,” Haru followed her. “Can you tell me what’s wrong instead of acting all weird?”

“We wanted to spend some quality time together, and now you’re inviting thousands of people over,” she replied. 

“Thousands? It’s two people!”

“And you act weird whenever Ruon-Jian is around. You just smoke pot all the time.”

“Can you please stop exaggerating?” He said. 

“I’m not exaggerating!” She glared. “I’m  _ fucking  _ relaxed considering that you’re texting Azula behind my back even though you know she treats me like a bitch!”

Haru made a defensive face. “I’m not texting Azula”

“You think I don’t know you text her?” Jin made a face. 

There was an awkward silence 

“I was texting her for French homework!” Haru’s voice let Jin know he was lying. “I need to know something.”

“On the weekend?”

“Yes, we have homework on the weekend.”

“Okay,” Jin crossed her arms. “Show me your phone.”

“No.”

“Why?” She asked. “I wouldn’t have a problem showing you mine.”

“So now we can only trust each other when we read one another’s texts? Here!” He offered her the phone, but she didn’t pick it up.

Zuko and Ruon-Jian burst out laughing as Jin stormed up the stairs. 

“Dude, she’s so pissed.”

“Yeah,” Haru agreed. 

Jin stayed in her bed the rest of the night, listening to her boyfriend ignore her to hang out with his friends. She opened up her phone and checked her Instagram notifications. 


	3. A Solid Plan

_ Saturday October 3 (5.11PM): You nailed it _

Jin and Haru got off of the bus together and started walking towards their homes. There was a silence between them and you could feel that their relationship wasn’t the same. 

“I’ll call you later, okay?” Haru said and Jin nodded. 

“Yeah.”

Haru went in to kiss her and she accepted, but she was still… distant. “Jin… I’m sorry. If I knew how important this cabin trip was to you, I wouldn’t have invited the guys.”

“I didn’t know it wasn’t that important to you,” she sniffed and looked at the ground. 

“It was important to me!” He said. “But… it’s also important for me to spend time with my friends. It used to be important to you too.”

Jin looked at him, then looked away. “It  _ is  _ important to me. But it’s not important for me to spend time with  _ your _ friends.”

“I said you could bring friends.”

Another silence. 

“Can’t you just-“

“Get some friends?” She finished for him. 

He sighed. “That’s not what I meant.”

Jin smiled. “Just be completely honest.”

“Completely honest?”

She nodded. 

“Jin, you’re the coolest girl I know,” he said. “You’re pretty, sweet, smart, and funny. But I don’t know what the problem is,” he cupped her cheeks. “You have to find new friends.” She smiled and nodded again. “Anyone who gets to be your friend is really lucky.”

“Don’t know what to say, huh?” She snorted. 

“I nailed it.”

“You nailed it.”

They kissed again, and this time Jin happily threw her arms around his neck. She stood on her tippy toes to reach better.   
  


When Jin got home, her mother wasn’t there. She walked in and took her shoes off, then threw her bag on the floor. She pushed her shoes against the wall and took her hat off. 

On the table, her mom had left a note: “Hope you had fun at the cabin! Love you, Mama.” A hundred dollar bill was on top of it. 

Jin picked it up and stuffed the bill into her pocket before sitting down. She opened her phone and noticed that Katara had accepted her follow request. Her heart hammered in anxiety as she pressed ‘message.’

_ You: Congratulations on having me as a friend! _

Jin deleted it. 

_ You: Hey girl! Whats up? _

Delete. 

Well, she deleted most of it. She accidentally hit “send” instead of delete when trying to get rid of the H. 

_ You: Hi is what I meant! _

_ You: I wanted to write Hi, but then I pressed the send button so it was just H. Haha _

_ Katara: 👍 _

Jin threw her head on the table in embarrassment. 

* * *

_ Monday October 5 (10.29AM): Strong Body Odor _

Jin walked into her class and saw Katara sitting by the window. She went to sit next to her, but some guy took her spot. Jin decided not to argue, and sat on the desk across from her. 

“How are you doing?” The boy asked Katara. 

She got up, walking over to Jin and sitting next to her. “I’ll sit here, if that’s okay?”

Jin nodded, smiling wide. Katara took her seat and removed her jacket. “Hi. Or… h?”

“H. H.,” Jin giggled. 

They focused their attention to the board. 

“Did we have homework over the weekend?” Jin asked.

Katara nodded. “Yes.”

_ “Fuck.” _

“Jin?” The teacher asked. “¿Qué dice el personaje principal de la historia?”

“Um…”

Katara whispered something in her ear. 

“E-ella se siente sola.”

“Katara, no quiero que respondas por Jin,” the teacher said. 

Katara stated the teacher directly in the eyes. “Ella no había encontrado su tarea. Solo la estaba ayudando. Lo preguntaste de la manera incorrecta. La forma correcta sería: ¿Cómo son los protagonistas de la historia?”

“Tienes razón. Lo siento,” the teacher grumbled, then sat at her desk. 

Katara grinned, looking proud of herself. Jin stared at her dumbfounded. “I lived in Madrid.”

“Okay, okay,” Jin nodded, still in awe. 

She nodded. “That’s why I don’t have friends. In Toronto. Besides my brother, but he’s a year ahead.”

“Oh.”

“So what’s your excuse?” She asked. 

Jin sniffed. “Strong body odor.”

They both giggled.   


* * *

_ Tuesday October 6 (11.50AM): Heroines _

Jin saw Katara walk down a flight of stairs and accidentally bumped into someone. “Oh sorry.”

“Hi!” It was the Ty Lee girl from the party, and Suki. “You’re the girl from the toilets?”

“Yeah.”

“We haven’t introduced ourselves,” she smiled. “I’m sorry, I was a bit out of it that evening. I’m Ty Lee!”

Ty Lee hugged Jin, which startled her a bit but she smiled. “Hey, Jin. Uhh, sorry that I got the wrong Nakamura.”

“No problem, it’s the thought that counts,” Ty Lee smiled. 

“And you’re Suki?”

“No, Muiyki,” she awkwardly extended her hand. “Kidding! Yep, I’m Suki.”

“Okay,” she laughed and shook it. 

Suddenly, all three of them got a message. 

_ Message: Whoever wants to help with organizing the Graduation Party, please come to the Auditorium.  _

“Are you going to?” Ty Lee asked. “This will be awesome. I would be in the organizational committee, but I decided against it. It’s so much work with school and everything. Also, Azula said that I can work behind the bar at the party. That’s the best job of all. So, are you? Maybe you could also work at the bar.”

“Okay, I’ll think about it,” Jin said. 

“Yay! That’s so nice!” Ty Lee hugged her again. “Come on!”

She grabbed Suki and Jin’s hands and pulled them forward. 

They landed in a room, Azula at the front. She saw Jin with the other two girls as they sat down.

“So, first of all I wanted to say that it’s nice how many of you came and want to do something for our year. Thanks,” Mai said into a microphone monotonously, standing on the stage. As she said it, Katara walked into the room and took a seat in the back row. “Does anyone not know what the hero party is?”

Katara raised her hand. 

Mai rolled her eyes. “Okay, so every year, eleventh grade organizes a party. The goal is that the younger ones practically lift the older ones and celebrate them like heroes. In past years there was always something with a red carpet, and once the graduates were picked up in a limousine. The gist is: the more we celebrate the graduates this year, the more we’ll be celebrated next year.” 

The audience clapped. 

“To organize the party we’ll make committees. That’s why Azula will read out the different tasks and you can raise your hand if you want to be part of that committee.”

“Okay, the first task is the bar,” she said. Ty Lee’s hand went straight up. “That means bar-tending on the night, but also taking care of drinks, glasses, ice, and everything else. Um, Teo, Chan, and Hahn.”

Ty Lee dropped her hand in shock. 

“Good, the next task is admission.”

“Put your hand up for that!” Ty Lee told the group. 

Azula rattled off a few names. They weren’t any of theirs. 

“Cloakroom? Yes you two, you’ll do.”

“Marketing? That means maker posters and stickers and distributing them.”

“The next task is supervision. Those people would be outside in the parking lot to check that no one is being too loud, no smoking at the entrance, no one is hiding alcohol in the bushes. Stuff like that. Who’s left?”

All that was left was Katara, Jin, Suki, Ty Lee, and the girl who sat with Jin to study that one day. 

“Um, this group can obviously not directly be at the party. But it’s an important job.”

Azula smirked at Jin.

* * *

_ Thursday October 8 (2.05PM): First air _

“I don’t get it!” Ty Lee sat on a bench. “She told me I couldn’t be in the organizing team but instead I would get the best job.” The rest of the girls gathered around her. “And I told her I worked to practice runs at Starbucks last summer. It’s not my fault that my boss was from the Stone Age and didn’t get that I could serve people and still check Instagram from time to time.”

“Ty Lee!” Suki snorted. 

“What’s so good about the job at the bar anyway?” Katara asked. 

“Are you serious?” Ty Lee gasped. “It’s so obvious! Guys like alcohol. So guys like girls who give them alcohol.”

Katara giggled. “Understood. Makes absolute sense.”

“Are you new here or what?” Suki asked, sucking on a lollipop. 

She nodded. 

Suki nodded. “Cool.”

“Man this sucks big time!” Ty Lee groaned. “That’s the party of the year and I’m standing outside, getting a bladder infection. That was the chance to start something with the older guys before they're gone.”

“Oh come on, the most awesome guys aren’t showing up anyway,” the Muslim girl commented. 

“And you know who the hottest guys are or what?”

“Why not?” She asked. 

“Isn’t it like, your family decides who you get to find hot or not?”

“Oh yes,” she looked down. “My brothers will stone me when they find out I’m looking at some Canadian guy.”

“Why aren’t the hottest guys attending this party?” Katara asked. 

“For them it’s like a child’s birthday,” Suki explained. “If they wanted to go to a party, they would host one themselves.”

“Hey guys,” the girl (Jin needed to learn her name) said. She looked forward at a car pulling into the parking lot. 

Ty Lee grinned. 

A boy stepped out. He had brown skin and messy hair. A piece of wheat sat between his lips as he slammed the car door shut and pulled his red hoodie down.  The piece of wheat made me laugh so hard, gotta love that dramatic boy

Ty Lee practically swooned. 

He pulled his sunglasses down as he got closer to them. They could now see his face, and he was indeed handsome. Katara looked away. Suki pulled her lollipop out of her mouth. 

“Jet Khanna,” Ty Lee breathed out. 

Katara turned to her. “You wanna make out with him?”

“Everyone wants to make out with him!” Ty Lee responded. 

“Mhm,” Suki said. 

The girl that Jin didn’t know the name of pulled out her phone. 

* * *

_ Friday October 9 (6.50PM): Friends _

“Why is it stupid?” Jin asked as she walked with Haru. 

“I dunno, this whole  _ Hero-party  _ annoys me,” he said. “I mean, why should I make an idiot of myself for people that I don’t like? For people that are shit?”

“Not everyone in 12th grade is shit,” she replied. 

He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, okay, but imagine you’re pouring Chan Nakamura a drink.”

“You’re right,” she sniffed. 

“What do you wanna do tonight?” He asked her. “Netflix and chili con carne maybe?”

“Hmm, that sounds exciting… but I can’t, sorry. I have a date,” she grinned. 

“With who?”

“With Katara,” she said. 

Haru smiled. “Who’s Katara?”

“A friend,” she bit her bottom lip. 

They grinned at each other. 


	4. The Party is Over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls go to the party.

_ Friday October 9 (7:38PM): Goodbye _

Jin’s mom touched her shoulder gently as she cried, holding the flowers close to her. “It’s okay.”

She wiped the tears from her eyes as she walked up to her father’s grave and gently placed the flowers against the headstone. 

Jin’s mother hugged her close and kissed her on the forehead. 

* * *

_ Saturday October 10 (10.11AM): Dumping you _

Jin smiled at Haru, buried in her pillow. She gently started pulling on his eyelashes, which made him wake up. 

“What are you doing?” He groaned. 

She laughed. “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

“No. I had a nightmare,” he said. 

“About what?”

“I dreamed that you wore red clothes,” he told her, eyes still closed. “You were completely drunk, singing  _ Tonight it's allowed to be a whore." _

“Haha, very funny,” she smiled, turning to face the ceiling. “You’re the one who said I should get friends. I don’t understand what the issue is.”

“My problem is that you don’t understand that the Hero-Party is a capitalistic event that promotes classism…”

“Blah, blah, blah,” Jin rolled over. “You keep that up and I’ll dump you.”

“Oh please, you couldn’t manage without me for a single moment,” Haru told her, and he was right. 

She kissed him. 

* * *

_ Monday October 12 (3.04PM): Crew Love is True Love _

“This one is good,” Katara said, pointing at the picture Jin had taken. 

She looked back and smiled at her friend. 

Suki walked into the room and closed the door, a big smile on her face. “Hi!” 

She gave Jin a kiss on the cheek. She then gave Katara and Amani (the muslim girl, as Jin had learned her name was) a kiss as well. 

“Do you know why Ty Lee wanted to meet up?” Amani asked. 

Suki shook her head and put her bag down. “Nope, no idea. You?”

“It’s already past ten,” Jin commented. She then noticed Suki pulling off her green coat. “I like your jacket.”

“Thanks! You also look great!” They grinned at each other. 

“Girls?” Ty Lee walked into the door. “Thank God, you’re on time. Look what I got!”

She showed her friends the construction worker’s outfits she’d bought and put them on the table. “Premium shipping is the best! I ordered it yesterday and it already arrived.”

Suki grabbed one and put it on. “It’s nice.”

“What’s this?” Katara grinned, fixing the security hat she put on her head. 

“Our outfits for the Hero-Party!” Ty Lee explained. 

“Oh…” Jin picked one up. “Cool?”

“I thought you wanted to ask Azula for another job?” Katara asked. 

Ty Lee pursed her lips. 

Amani placed her hands on the table. “Okay, let’s do this. I have a test afterward.”

“So I thought that we could meet up regularly to organize everything?” Ty Lee looked around. “Maybe twice a week? Or is that not enough?”

“Chill out,” Amani said. “We’re only supervising, and that’s it. There’s nothing to organize.”

Ty Lee glared at her. “Why are you always so disrespectful, Amani?”

Amani gave her an offended face. 

“I mean, criticism is very important. But it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it. All criticism must be constructive,” she turned away from her and to Jin. “Okay, different subject. You know Chan, no?”

Suki gasped, fixing her baseball cap. “Toilet-Nakamura!”

“Yes,” she nodded. “Did you know that he’s in a band?”

Jin shook her head. 

“They’re organizing this house party on Friday night and they’ll shoot their new music video. And the thing is, they always have those super hot girls in their videos,” Ty Lee explained, getting a look on her face. 

Amani made a face. 

“And the girls can dance super sexy with open mouths behind the great epic guys?” Katara asked, also making a face. 

Ty Lee sighed. “It’s an artform to be able to dance super sexy. Sometimes you're so sexist.” She tsked. 

Katara raised her eyebrows dramatically at that. “Me?”

“So how are we getting in?” Ty Lee asked. 

“We?”

“Well I’m not going alone!” Ty Lee protested. 

“And why should I go to such a misogynistic party?” Katara asked. 

Amani smiled. “I’d be in.”

“Me too,” Suki decided. 

“Because now we’re a crew. And if the whole crew is going, so are you,” Ty Lee told her. 

“Um,” Jin spoke up. “Chan has been following me on Instagram ever since the party.”

“Nice! Can you ask him if we can come?” She begged. 

“I have a boyfriend. I can’t just text him!” Jin protested. 

Amani took her phone. “Well if you want to provide access to future parties, you’d better split up with your boyfriend.”

“Hey!”

The girls gathered around her as she opened the phone and went into Instagram and started double-tapping like crazy. “There you go. In about three minutes he’ll text you something nasty like  _ hey baby! Do you like what you see?  _ Then you can ask him. You don’t have to marry him.”

Amani handed her the phone back as the bell rang

Jin looked through the account and scrolled down. She’d liked… everything. 

“Well kiddies, Amani’s got to go! Politics ‘awaitin,” she grabbed her books and waved goodbye. 

The other girls looked around, shocked expressions on their faces. 

* * *

_ Tuesday October 13 (3.41PM): Your sweet potato _

“Wow,” Haru’s eyes widened. “Are you Jin Hú? The prettiest woman on the planet? Oh my… I would love to kiss you.”

Jin started laughing and pressed her lips against his. She tried to pull away, but he chased her lips and she giggled. 

Her phone went off and she pulled away for a second to check. 

Haru stepped back. “Sweet potatoes, fuck yes! I swear, since I discovered them, they're the only thing I’ve been eating.”

_ Message from Chan: you like my pics? _

_ You: yah _

_ Chan: ha. Nice _

_ Chan: come to my party.  _

_ You: okay but on one condition  _

_ Chan: name it.  _

_ You: can I bring some friends? _

_ Chan: if their hot, yes _

“Like, really, why weren’t they a thing earlier? Or those purple potatoes? Apparently they make your cum taste better, but I don’t…”

Jin looked up and noticed her mom in the store. “What?”

“Oh well, sweet potatoes. Never change a winning team,” She grabbed Haru and pulled him back, away from the potatoes. “What’s wrong?”

Jin looked down. “My mom’s here.”

Haru peaked back out. “What, are you ashamed to be seen with me now?”

“No, no, but I mean, you don’t need to meet each other like that, in passing.”

He gave her a look. 

“Don’t be mad,” she took one of the potatoes away from him. “You’re my favorite sweet potato.”

She kissed it and smiled, then Haru took it back trying not to laugh. 

“And off we go to the alcohol!” She declared. “I’m going to a party with the girls.”

“Whose party?” He asked. 

“A guy in senior year,” she replied, taking a bottle of wine off the shelf. “You wanna come?”

“No, I’m watching something with Matteo,” he replied, awkwardly, so Jin knew he was hiding something. 

“Sounds interesting,” she nodded. 

“Well, it’s gonna be.”

She shook her head yes. “Oh I believe you.”

“It’s about a guy who lives in a box.”

She gasped dramatically. “Wow! In a box? What is he doing in a box?”

“Okay, that’s enough,” he laughed. 

“Really? Is it enough or is it getting even funnier?”

“That’s it! That’s it!”

“I don’t know,” she clicked her tongue. “Is it a small box or a big box?”

He tried to kiss her to shut her up, but she leaned back and grinned before walking away. 

“I think it’s a medium sized box,” he answered. 

* * *

_ Friday October 16 (6.41PM): The party is over _

_ “Hello, this is Chan at the mic, a bit high again, I’ve got my stuff with me.  _

_ You get in my line, you get in my rhymes, but where is the subtext between the lines?  _

_ I don’t know it, I dozed off with the pencil in my hand. But it’s not bad if I’m… “ _

Amani, Jin, and Katara sat against a wall, watching Chan’s horrible rap with some girls in bikinis surrounding him in his indoor pool (Ty Lee was one of them). Katara leaned in to tell Amani a funny comment, and she snorted into her orange juice.

One of the girls pushed Jet into the water. 

“That was fucking gorgeous!” The director declared. “We’re gonna do one more take. You, fucking beautiful! If you two could give the same energy, that’d be fucking beautiful.”

They nodded. 

“Alright, let’s do one more.” 

Afterwards, everyone gathered in Chan’s living room with cups of beer and/or vodka. Amani was sitting with the rest of the girls, dancing in place to the song that was on. 

Jin looked down at her phone, and when she looked back up Chan was there. “It’s too bad you didn’t want to be on camera. You look good today.”

Jin struggled for a reply as he walked off and she stared after him before returning to her screen. 

_ Haru: missed two calls.  _

Ty Lee was talking with Jet, whose messy hair was now wet, but he had replaced his mouth wheat with a vape.

Jin stood alone for a while, glass empty, watching her friends have fun. Chan came over and offered her one of champagne. She accepted and put the empty glass down.

“Do you smoke weed?” He asked. 

She shook her head. 

He nodded. “I don’t get how people can smoke weed. It just makes you stupid and tired.”

“At least alcohol makes you funny,” she smiled. 

“Let’s drink to that,” they clinked their glasses together and took a sip. “Are you guys already preparing for the Hero-Party?”

“Yeah, but I’m not involved in it,” Jin lied.

Chan nodded. “Jet and I skipped our jobs last year. We were supposed to be at the bar of some shit. But I’m not going to make a fool of myself for some dumbasses.”

She nodded. “Yeah, I think so too. It’s a really stupid tradition. It promotes capitalism and classism.”

Jin didn’t know what half of those words meant, but Haru was always ranting about how bad it was and it annoyed her. Maybe it would make him go away. 

“Oh, so you’re one of those political kids? I didn’t know that,” he tilted his head. “I like it.”

He moved a strand of hair behind her ear, and Jin’s heart stuttered. 

Before he could kiss her and she would have to stop him, they turned their heads to see Azula and Amani yelling at each other. 

“Then fuck off over there…” Azula gasped when Amani punched her in the face. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME? ARE YOU COMPLETELY INSANE?!”

Amani stormed out the door. Jin ran after her, Katara and Suki joining. They walked outside to see Ty Lee and Jet locking lips, bodies pressed completely together. They dragged her off, but Ty Lee gave Jet one last kiss before she followed them. 

Now on the bus, Ty Lee turned to Amani. “Can you finally tell me what happened?”

“It doesn’t matter what happened,” Amani had her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. 

“Just leave her alone,” Katara told her. 

“Why? She cockblocked me! I think I deserve to know why,” Ty Lee argued. 

Katara rolled her eyes. 

“Sorry if this is not politically correct, but—“

“Oh, isn’t that how all the best sentences start?” Amani muttered. 

“Maybe you shouldn’t go to parties like that as a Muslim,” she finished. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Katara leaned forward. “Muslims aren’t allowed to go to parties, or what?”

“Well you saw what happened, right?” Ty Lee gestured to Amani. 

“I’m out!” She stormed away from the group. 

“Well, it’s true, isn’t it?” Ty Lee yelled as she walked away before getting off on the next stop. 

Jin looked down at her phone. 

_ Haru: four missed calls.  _


	5. What Makes You Horny?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cudytufugicyfy I totally didn’t accidentally post the next chapter before this one w h a t

_Saturday October 17 (4.11PM): Drama_

Jin rang the doorbell. Haru’s mom opened the door and she smiled at her. “Hello Mrs. Tán. Is Haru here?”

“Yes, he’s playing video games with Teo and Zuko in his room,” she opened the door wider to invite her in. 

“Thank you,” Jin walked in and made her way to Haru’s room. 

“Against the wall…and bam! In your face!” Haru said, leaning against the wall. 

“Hey.”

All three boys turned to her. 

“Hey Jin,” Zuko smiled, returning his attention to the game. 

Haru did the same. “Hey.”

She took a deep breath. “Um… Haru…”

“We’re we supposed to meet up or something?” He asked. 

“No.”

“BOOM,” he said. 

Jin bit her bottom lip. “Could we speak somewhere else for a second?”

“No, we’re just gaming online. And Zuko and Teo are pretty bad,” Haru said. 

“Shut it,” Teo rolled his eyes. 

“Your mom is bad,” Zuko murmured. 

Haru laughed. “Dude, we’re all winners. My mom too.”

“Are you mad or something?” Jin asked him. 

“No.”

“Ha!” Zuko dropped his controller on the couch. “Have over! And this is how you _win_.”

The boys laughed as they high fived Zuko. 

Haru sighed and set his controller down, going over to where Jin was.

“Dramaaaaa,” Zuko called as they walked into the kitchen for privacy. 

“What’s going on?” She asked. 

He averted her gaze. “Nothing.”

“Why aren’t you replying to my texts?”

“I was busy,” he said. 

_“Haru,”_ she muttered. “Are you mad that I didn’t pick up when I was at the party?”

The look he gave her told her that his answer was yes. 

“Haru, I’m sorry,” she breathed in and out. “Amani got into a fight with Azula and then everything just went wild. I just forgot to look at my phone.”

“You know, I just think it’s a bit strange that you accuse me of letting you down for my boys, but ever since you got your new girl-clique, you ignore me,” he crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. 

“Didn’t you want me to find new friends?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “But that thing with your mom wasn’t cool either.”

She nodded. “Yeah, that was stupid I’m sorry.”

Silence. 

“Do you maybe… want to come over for dinner on Friday? My mom is home and I’m sure she will cook something,” she said. 

Haru nodded. “Sure.”

“So everything’s okay again?” Jin asked, grabbing her boyfriend’s hands. 

He smiled as she pressed their noses together and kissed him. 

“Haru! You were right, I need your help!” Zuko yelled. 

“I’m coming!” 

He walked away from her. 

* * *

_Monday October 19 (3.11PM): It’s complicated_

“Everything’s so shitty right now,” Jin said, walking to the school building with Katara. “Someone’s saying something wrong, forgets to answer the phone, and now suddenly there’s a crisis. Or… am I being stupid?”

Katara’s hair was in a messy bun that day. She had two pieces of hair in loops around her head. “I just don’t get why you won’t introduce Haru to your mother.”

She looked down and didn’t answer. 

“Or do you have an American mom who won’t let a boy in her house?” She laughed. _“I’m defending the virginity of my daughter even if it’s the last thing I do.”_

Jin burst out laughing. “No!”

“So what’s the problem then?” She asked. “Haru is a parent’s dream—with his hair and his guitar.”

“No idea,” Jin confessed. “It’s just complicated.”

* * *

_Tuesday October 20 (11:25AM): Consequences_

“Jin, could you quiz me?” Suki asked. “There’s a French test tomorrow.”

She nodded. “Yeah, it’s more fun than studying Spanish.”

Suki handed her the notebook.

Jin looked for a word. “Uhh, _the pressure_.”

Suki thought for a moment. _“La pression_?”

They both laughed as Ty Lee walked through the doors of the library and sat at their table. She was carrying a bottle filled with a green smoothie. “Good news, Jet and Chan aren’t mad about what happened Friday.”

“Oh thank God, what would we have done if Jet and Chan were mad at us?” Katara sarcastically murmured. 

“But I still think there should be consequences for what happened,” Ty Lee declared. “I thought about it, and I know not everyone will be happy with it, but I don’t think Amani should be part of our crew anymore.”

Suki pulled out the lollipop she was sucking on. “Why not?”

“I’m not entirely sure how I feel about the term _crew_ and if I want to be a part of one,” Katara said. “But if Amani is out, then so am I.”

“You don’t even know what happened between Amani and Azula,” Jin said. “I do know that Mai and Azula aren’t exactly angels.”

“What exactly happened between you two?” Suki asked. 

“Nothing,” Jin lied. 

Suki shook her head. “No, it’s not nothing.”

Jin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “We used to be friends, but one day Azula got super drunk and passed out. I didn’t know what to do, so I called her dad.”

“That’s it?” Suki blinked a couple times. 

She nodded. “Back to the real problem. Amani was probably entirely justified.”

“Jin is right, they are super bitchy. They probably pulled off some racist shit,” Suki said. 

Ty Lee looked away, taking a ship of her slushy. 

“Didn’t you have one of those for lunch as well?” Katara asked, eyebrows furrowed. 

“Yeah, so?” She closed the lid. “Onto a different topic. You probably want to know what it’s like to make out with Jet. It was _amazing_. He’s a really good kisser. I asked him if I could come to his place on Friday, and he said yes!”

“Nice!” Suki gave her a high five. 

“You sure you want your first time to be with Jet?” Katara asked her. 

“Who else?” Ty Lee asked. “Jet is basically the king of the school. I heard that it’s super rare that girls have an orgasm when they have their first time, but with Jet, you do.”

“Don’t you want to wait a bit? Get to know him more?” She asked. 

She shook her head. “On average girls are 16.9 years old when they have sec for the first time. I’m 17. I’m below average.”

“Okay,” Jin awkwardly murmured, going to her work. The rest of the girls copied her. 

“Um, could we have a pre-drink at your place on Friday?” Ty Lee asked.

“What for?”

“For Jet,” she explained. “I wanna be a bit tipsy so that I’m more calm, and if you drink alone then you’re an alcoholic. And also could lend me your birth control? I don’t have any yet.”

“Uhh, you can’t take my birth control,” Jin said. “You need to see a gynecologist for that.”

Ty Lee’s face went red. “Could you come with me?”

“Why?” Suki pulled out her lollipop. 

“I mean, it’s freaking embarrassing going there,” Ty Lee said. 

Katara looked up. “Isn’t it more embarrassing if you go with us there?”

There was another moment of silence. 

“We’ll come,” Jin promised. 

* * *

_Thursday October 22 (2:53pm): Anticipation_

The girls were gathered around Ty Lee, who wasn’t moving as she sat in front of the gynecologist’s desk. 

“Hello!” The woman smiled. 

When no one responded, Katara placed her hand on her friend’s shoulder. “This is Ty Lee. She’s here today because she’s about to have sex for the first time and wants to know about contraception.”

“I want the pill,” she nodded. 

“So sex,” the gynecologist said. “Yeah, okay. How old are you?”

“I’m really old,” she awkwardly laughed. “Seventeen.”

“I was twenty-seven,” the gynecologist said. “It was the last semester of uni. Yeah… Lee… who worked in the convenience store, with an integrated video store,” she leaned back in her seat. “That was a thing back then.”

She pulled out a fake penis from a drawer. “And then on our first date he got a really bad rash from his pineapple-cocktail. Nettle rash. Really nasty, I tell you.”

She pulled out a condom in a blue wrapper and ripped it open. “Then we went to the hospital and I got him cortisone. Oh, the gratefulness in his eyes when the itching stopped.”

Ty Lee looked extremely unsettled. 

She began to roll the condom onto the fake penis. “And then we began to make love there, unrestrained.”

“That’s so cute,” Suki smiled, hands over her heart. 

“Yeah, and?” Ty Lee asked. “Did it hurt? Did it bleed?”

“Oh well, yeah. But in fact Lee’s heart was bleeding more. I just dumped him like an old tablecloth.”

“By the way, my cousin was bleeding so much she had to go to the hospital,” Suki said. 

“That’s bullshit,” Katara countered. 

She nodded. “Bleeding can happen the first time you have intercourse if you aren’t careful.”

Ty Lee looked like she was going to have a panic attack. 

“Yeah well, then, take some,” she pulled out more condoms. 

“Tootie frutie?” Ty Lee asked, reading the label. 

“You’ll get the prescription at the front desk.”

The girls walked away, Ty Lee stared at the object in her hand with terror. 

* * *

_Friday October 23 (7.47PM): Screwed up_

Ty Lee messed with the condom still in its wrap as she held her drink on Jin’s bed. “Honestly, how painful is it?”

“I don’t remember anything from my first time,” Suki confessed. “Just drink, you won’t feel anything.”

“Do you want to be so drunk you don't remember anything?” Katara asked her. 

“No,” she turned to Jin. “Pinch my arm. How much does it hurt?”

When Jin did it, she yelled and said something along the lines of “that doesn’t even resemble pinching!”

“If you just relax, it won’t hurt,” Katara told her. 

Ty Lee rolled her eyes. “How would you know? You haven’t had sex.”

“Okay, seriously, Jet needs to come soon,” Jin said. “What was his last text?”

“ _Picking you up at ten. We’ll do something chill. J.”_

“It’s almost eight. Can’t you just call him?”

Ty Lee’s eyes widened. “I don’t want him to think I’m desperate for dick!”

“But what if he doesn’t send a message?”

“Then I will be a bit relieved,” she confessed. 

Katara touched her friend’s shoulder. “Ty Lee, you don’t have to have sex with him if you don’t want to.”

“I want to!” She argued. “I just don’t want it to hurt.”

“That’s why you have to relax,” she said. “What about him turns you on?”

“Turns me on?”

“Yeah,” she nodded. “What makes you horny?”

“Horny…” she shook her head. “Nothing. I don’t get horny.”

“You’re never horny?” Katara raised an eyebrow. 

“No!” Ty Lee blushed. “Do you?”

“Yes!”

She sat up. “Then I really don’t get why you don’t have sex.”

“Hey, I bet I can make you horny,” she smirked and wiggled her eyebrows. 

Anxiety flashed through Ty Lee’s eyes. “I’m not about to do some kind of lesbian thing.”

“Ty Lee, it’s not some kind of lesbian thing. Just listen to me, lie on your back, and close your eyes.”

She did so. 

“Imagine you and Jet are standing in the bedroom. Are you imagining it?”

“Yes.”

“What’s happening?”

“What do you mean?”

“Describe it.”

“We’re standing in a bedroom,” she paused for a long time. “I’m wearing a white dress.”

“That’s good. Continue.”

“Okay! The dress is the same as that Stella McCartney dress, with lace at the bottom. Except it doesn’t have lacy at the bottom. I have my hair down—No! I’m wearing it up, but it’s a bit loose so my hair falls down some. I’m wearing pink lipstick. Not the lightest shade from Mac, but the one that’s kind of medium,” she sat up. “This actually works!”

“Really?” Katara asked, chuckling. 

“I think so.”

“You get horny by talking about clothes and make-up?”

“Yes!” 

“People get horny from different things,” Suki commented as Ty Lee threw things in her bag. 

“Jin?” Her mom called. 

“I’m coming!” Jin turned to her friends. “Okay, you guys have to leave now.”

“We can’t go! He hasn’t texted yet.”

“Go to your house then,” she said. 

“I can’t go!” Ty Lee protested. “I’ve been drinking.”

“Can’t we just sit here? We’ll be quiet,” Katara said. 

“Jin!”

“I’M COMING!” She turned to her friends. “Okay, but you have to be really quiet! And leave through the window, okay?”

“Hey!”

“Hey,” her mom said, standing over a pot in the kitchen. “Shouldn’t your boyfriend be here by now?”

“Uh, yes!” Jin nodded. “But he texted me and said he’s a bit delayed.”

“Okay.”

_Jin: where the hell are you?_

“It smells good, do you need help?” She asked her mom. 

“No, it’s fine.”

There was a very loud sound of laughing girls. 

“What was that?”

“Um, I think I forgot to turn off my movie. I’ll fix it.”

Jin acted like she was going down to the basement but maneuvered to the front door. She opened it and Jet was there with his mouth wheat. “What are you doing here?”

“Is Ty Lee here?”

“No!” She said. “Well, yes, but you can’t come here.”

“Hi, nice to meet you!” Jin’s mother reached out and shook Jet’s hand. 

“Hi, Jet.”

“No, no, this isn’t my boyfriend,” Jin said. “This is Ty Lee’s boyfriend.”

“Oh really?” Her mother asked. “Who’s Ty Lee?”

“A friend. Jet thought Ty Lee was here, but she isn’t, so he’s leaving now.”

Suddenly the girls appeared, in front of her mother, and Jin could feel the embarrassment in her stomach. “Suki, Katara, Ty Lee, what are you guys doing here?”

“Uhh, remember when I borrowed your jacket? We thought we’d bring it here,” Katara told her. “But you weren’t in your basement so we left it outside your bag. No, I mean the window!”

“Okay, thanks.”

They drunkenly mumbled for a bit about having so many jackets to deliver until Jin slammed the door shut. 

“What’s going on here, Jin?”

“Nothing,” she said. 

“Were those girls drunk?”

“No.”

Jin pressed Haru’s contact. When he finally answered, she said, “Where the hell are you?”

“Sorry, but I can’t come tonight.”

“What do you mean?” Jin asked. 

“I forgot I have to help my mom with a thing, and…”

“Can’t you help her tomorrow?”

“No it’s really important. I have to do it now.”

“Haru, get over here now.” A different voice asked. 

Jin knew that voice. “Who was that?”

“That was my mom.”

“Haru!”

“I’m sorry, but I have to go now. Sorry,” He hung up on her. 

Haru was with Azula.


	6. When Boys Lie

_Sunday October 25 (2.42PM): Alternative Three_

Jin sat in the café, waiting for Zuko to show up. She was drinking an iced coffee. 

“Hey,” Zuko sat in the seat. 

“Hi,” she looked down. 

“Sad?” He asked. 

“No, not at all,” she pushed another glass of iced coffee in Zuko’s direction. “I bought you coffee.”

“Thanks,” he took a sip of it. “What are we talking about?”

“Nothing, I just thought coffee would be nice,” she smiled. “What did you do this weekend?”

“Uhh… nothing,” he said. 

She smiled. “What did you do on Friday?”

That made Zuko still for a moment. “My mom had her birthday.”

“So you just stayed at home?”

“Yes!” He said. “Did something happen last Friday?”

“No, I was just wondering what you did,” she turned to her iced coffee. 

Zuko gave her a jokingly suspicious look before her face fell, and so did his. 

“I think maybe…” she looked down. “Haru is with Azula.”

“Oh,” Zuko pulled the zipper of his jacket further up. 

“Do you know anything about it?” She asked. 

“No,” he said. “Why do you think he was?”

“I was talking to him on the phone, and I heard her voice in the background,” she confessed. “Are you sure Haru wasn’t there? You didn’t invite him over?”

“No.”

_That means she went to his house._

* * *

_Monday October 26 (2.15PM): Fuck You_

“I’m going to see Jet again soon,” Ty Lee was saying, but Jin wasn’t paying attention. She was staring at Azula and Mai. “He said he thinks I’m really special.” Jin glared at Haru. He smiled but she didn’t. “I think we have something going on. It’s just that there’s a big age difference.” He looked at his phone for a while and Jin received a message from him that said _smile then._ “I think there could be something between us. I think I’m ready for it. Wait—did I tell you guys that I got an orgasm?”

“Okay, what was it like?” Katara asked. 

_Jin: you smile_

“It was a bit like a sneeze. Just down there.”

Katara raises an eyebrow. “Like sneezing?”

“Mhm.”

_Haru: I am smiling_

Jin over exaggerated her smiling face and gave him a sarcastic thumbs up. 

“And I think I know why everyone gets an orgasm with him,” Ty Lee said. 

“Why is that?”

“Because he was _really_ big.” She whispered. 

Katara snorted. “You can’t go around talking about his dick size.”

“Why not?” Ty Lee asked. 

“You’re asking me why you can’t go around talking about his most vulnerable body part?” Katara asked. 

_Haru: hello??_

Jin turned her attention to the conversation. 

Ty Lee giggled. “Well first of all, that body part wasn’t exactly vulnerable. And second of all I’m pretty sure he’ll talk about my body with his friends.”

_Jin: hello_

“Since guys do it, I think girls can do it too. Sorry for being for equality and feminism.”

“But Ty Lee,” Katara sighed. “First of all, size doesn’t have anything to do with orgasm. And second, just because guys are idiots doesn’t mean we have to be as well. It has nothing to do with equality at all.”

_Haru: okay text me when you’re not pissed_

She watched him put his phone away and talk with Zuko. 

“Whatever…”

“But it was good then?” Katara asked. “That’s the important part.”

Jin tried to form the words to reply to Haru, but she couldn’t. 

“It was really good,” Ty Lee agreed. “But there’s just one thing. No one told me that it actually runs out of you.”

“Didn’t you use a condom?” Jin asked. 

She shook her head. “No, he said he tends to not use one.”

“Ty Lee…” Katara mumbled. 

Jin grinned. “What the hell is that?”

Suki and Amani came up to them writing hoverboards and wearing helmets. Amani was carrying a bag. 

The three girls watched as they came up next to them and stopped their hoverboards. Suki gave someone a hi five. 

“Where did you get those?” Ty Lee asked. 

Suki grinned. “Amani knows someone!”

“So Suki told me about all that toilet paper you bought.” Amani said. “Someone will pick it up tonight.”

“But I need payment first.”

“That’s not how it works,” she told her. “He needs the toilet paper to get paid by his people, and then he pays you, so you can pay your people.”

“But I don’t have ‘people.’” 

“Do you think a credit card operates without people?” She asked before rolling away. 

Suki grinned and twirled hers before following Amani. 

Ty Lee grinned and perked up when she saw Jet walk past them with a boy everyone called Longshot. 

“Hey,” he said, not even looking at her. 

Ty Lee deflated. 

“Hey, are you coming to the Halloween party on Friday?” Chan asked Jin, smiling. Jin hated that he was sometimes adorable. 

“Maybe—“

“Yes, we’re coming!” Ty Lee answered for her. 

“Good,” he grinned. “See you later!”

“Bye!” Jin called after him, smiled when she noticed Haru give her a look. 

* * *

_Tuesday October 27 (3.30PM): Not Lying_

Both Haru and Jin were at the train stop. Haru sat next to her and leaned in to kiss her, but she pulled away. “You smell like weed.”

“What’s up?” Haru asked her. When she didn’t answer, he said, “What’s bothering you?”

“Is there something between you and Azula?” Jin asked. “I know I heard her voice on the phone.”

“It was my mother talking in the background,” Haru said. “I was helping her.”

Jin shook her head. “It’s not working.”

“What do you want, Jin?” He asked. “Do you want to go on a break?”

“That’s what you want.”

“But it isn’t,” he assured her, grabbing her hands. “You need to stop being insecure all the time. I want to talk with you.”

Jin sniffed and kissed him. He hugged her and pulled her close. She hugged back. 

* * *

_Thursday October 29 (2.30PM): The truth_

The girls were in the bathroom. Ty Lee was texting someone, Amani was redoing her hijab, and Jin was fixing her makeup. 

Amani wrapped the scarf over her head. “Do you like it like that?”

“No,” Suki shook her head and made a face. 

“You can’t see the _blah_ in your face,” they both laughed. 

“Why won’t he text me back?” Ty Lee pouted. “He’s probably super busy with his classes.”

“Wait, I have an idea,” Suki grabbed Amani’s hijab and helped her fix it so that it went across her neck on both sides, kind of like a cape, and they both pinned it. 

“I’m also not like those other girls who go crazy as soon as a guy they like doesn't text them back for a few days,” Ty Lee claimed. “But it’s okay to text him now, isn’t it? I texted him last night. And I mean, it’s stupid to just wait! If you want to text someone, you should just do it, right?”

“No idea. I’ve never fucked the same person twice,” Suki said. 

Ty Lee looked at her phone. “Yeah whatever, I’ll just text him now.”

Amani grabbed the phone and scrolled up, much to Ty Lee’s protest. Her eyes widened. “You sent him nudes?”

“So what?” She said as Suki grabbed the phone. “That’s what everyone’s doing.”

“Wow,” Suki commented. 

“That’s not what everyone does. That’s so stupid,” Amani said. “Ty Lee, you’re a minor!”

“Amani, it’s 2021,” Ty Lee said. “Women can do whatever they want with their bodies. I thought you were a feminist as well.”

“Dude, that’s got nothing to do with feminism,” Amani said. “Jet can do whatever he wants with your pictures now.”

“I don’t care. I just want him to text me back.”

“If he were into you,” Amani smiled sympathetically. “He wouldn’t have ignored you for the last three days.”

“I read on the internet that boys ignore you to make themselves more interesting! 

“Wow, the internet! The source of truth!” Amani sighed. “That guy just wanted to fuck you. Why won’t you just accept that?”

Ty Lee’s eyes started watering. “Why are you always so mean?”

She stormed off. Amani sighed and watched after her. 

“Guys, we’re her friends,” Amani said. “Who else is going to tell her the truth if we don’t? You know that I’m right!”

“Yes, but you could have said it better,” Suki said. 

“And how do you know that?” Jin asked. “You weren’t there. Maybe it’s just a big misunderstanding.”

“Jin, my love, _boys lie._ When they’re actually nice, they want to have sex with you, or they feel guilty,” she picked up her bag. “He’s going to break her heart. That’s the way it goes.”

Amani took her leave, and Jin and Suki were left in the bathroom alone. 

* * *

_Friday October 30 (8.30PM): Halloween_

The girls were all dressed in costumes and partying, drinking, and dancing. Katara, dressed as Velma from Scooby Doo, twirled Ty Lee who was dressed like a nurse. Jin just sat on a couch in her princess costume. 

The girls (Suki was dressed like a boy) were all together, except for Amani who stayed home, and tried to get Jin to join them. Ty Lee started dragging Jin up, but she got distracted by Jet talking to a girl. 

_Haru: Hey Sweetheart, you know that you’re the only woman in the world for me, right? I love you more than anything_

She turned her phone off and put it in her bag. That was when she saw Azula dressed like a man wearing a suit and top hat. Everything went quiet and she walked towards her. 

When Azula saw her, her face darkened. 

“Was Haru with you last week?”

Azula gave her a fake smile. “Oopsie. Busted. Sorry. Didn’t he tell you?”

“Fuck you!” Jin said. 

“Fuck you, Jin! Fuck you!” She pushed her and walked off. 

Jin ran to a bedroom and sat down sobbing. She was right. Haru had cheated on her with her ex-best friend. 

_Jin: I talked to Azula. You’re such an asshole. I know EVERYTHING_

She turned her phone off and cried more. That was when the door opened and Chan walked in she tried wiping her eyes. 

“Sorry, I just wanted to check in,” he said. “Hey, what’s going on?”

Jin declined Haru’s call. 

Chan sat next to her. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” she sniffed and declined his call again. 

“Your boyfriend?” He asked. 

Jin nodded, then shook her head. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know if he’s your boyfriend?” Chan asked her sympathetically. 

“He’s my boyfriend,” Jin corrected. “Just…”

“Fuck him,” Chan said. He wiped away Jin’s tears. “He’s making a beautiful girl like you cry. He’s a jerk.”

Chan pressed his lips up to hers and she kissed him back. She fell onto the bed and he crawled on top of her. She pushed him away. 

At that moment a woman walked into the room. Jin turned to stares at her in surprise. 

Chan stood up. “I was looking for you. Um, this is On Ji, my girlfriend.”

“Hi,” she smiled. 

“This is Jin,” Chan said. “Her boyfriend upset her. I was just trying to comfort her.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” On Ji said. “I can imagine how you feel. You can leave, I’m taking over.”

Jin awkwardly scrambled up. Chan left the room and the girl sat next to her. 

“So sweetie, what happened?” On Ji asked. 

“Um…” Jin said. “My boyfriend cheated on me.”

“What a jerk,” she said. “You’re in year 11, right?”

Jin nodded. 

“You know what, the same thing happened to me in 11th grade. I was super into this guy in my class, Hide, from seventh grade to ninth grade. I was super happy when we finally got together and everything was awesome until that dick had sex with some other bitch at a party,” she said. “I totally broke down… but do you know what the good thing was?”

Jin shook her head. 

“This year, everything got better. The boys became more… mature. They somehow understood that they just can’t behave like that.”

Jin stared at the wall. 

“I’ve been together with Chan for three months now,” she smiled. “And I know he would never do something like that! It’s gonna get better, trust me. Forget that jerk. Go out, party, get drunk, make out with some guy! In 11th grade, you should have fun before life gets serious.”

“Thank you,” Jin sniffed. “You’re really nice.”

“Come on, let’s go!” She pulled her up. “Come with me.”

She shook her head. “No. I think I’ll stay here for a little longer and then go home.”

“Are you sure?” On Ji asked. 

Jin nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay, fine. But some other time, yeah?” She then walked out of the room. 

Jin felt like she couldn’t breathe. She could hear her heartbeat. She started to leave, but then she saw Ty Lee staring at Jet making out with Mai. She was drinking and crying a little. Jin just ran. 

She walked home, holding her shoes. When she opened the gate and walked to her front porch, she saw Haru sitting there. Jin stared at him. 

“Ice princess?” He asked. 

“You’re such a cliché,” Jin said, sitting down next to him. 

They sat in silence for a while. 

“There’s nothing going on between Azula and me,” Haru said. “I lied to you, yes, and I _was_ with her last Friday. I've actually been with her a lot lately. But it has nothing to do with me being with her.”

“Haru, what’s going on?”

“Azula sells weed,” Haru admitted. 

“Really?” Jin asked. 

He nodded. 

“Why does it have to be her?”

“It has nothing to do with her,” Haru said. “I just don’t know where else to get it. Zuko told me their mom smokes and sometimes Azula takes some and sells to make extra money. We barely even talk. She hands me the weed, I give her the money, then she drives off.”

There was a long silence. 

“Why did you text her when we were on vacation?” She asked. 

“The guys wanted to smoke so I asked her if she could hook us up,” he said. “You can look through my texts if you want.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me?” She asked him. 

Haru looked down. “I was afraid of your reaction. Even when I smoke weed, you freak out. I’m really sorry. I wanted to tell you earlier, and I'm done with it now. I promise. I already told Azula I don’t want to do it anymore.”

Jin stared at the grass. _What have I done?_

“Jin, please don’t be mad at me,” he said. “You can trust me.”

She started crying. 

He pulled her close to him and kissed the top of her head. 


	7. There’s Something Wrong With Me

_ Monday November 9 (11.32AM): Who Did You Hook Up With? _

Ava and the girls were in the cafeteria, Ty Lee rabling as she moved her food around her plate. “Jet is not the kind of guy to just go out with one girl. It’s just not him. And my mom says that you shouldn’t try to change other people.”

Katara raised her eyebrows, taking a bite of food. 

“And just because he made out with Mai doesn’t mean that our thing isn’t special to him, right? He said that I have a really beautiful stomach.”

“Yes, you two totally had a connection,” Suki said sarcastically. 

“I know, right?” She nodded. “Wouldn’t it be stupid just to give up now?”

“Yep,” Suki said. 

“Also, there are lots of examples where it worked,” Ty Lee said. “I mean, look at Rose and Jack. He didn’t just give up when Rose told him that they couldn’t see each other anymore. He dressed up and snuck into First Class to talk to her.”

“Ty Lee, I don’t think that’s how it works in real life,” Jin said. 

“It does!” She argued. “The film is based on a true story.”

“Yeah… but only the part about the iceberg and the sinking ship,” Amani said. 

“Ty Lee, what are you doing?” Katara asked when she noticed her moving the pieces of the salad around again. 

“I’m sorting my salad,” she said. 

Katara nodded. “It’s sorted now. Eat.”

Ty Lee looked like she didn’t want to. She stabbed a cucumber and brought it to her mouth. 

“Okay, guys, how was the costume party?” Amani asked. 

Suki grinned. “It was awesome! Katara twerked.”

Katara snorted, blushing. “Where were you?”

“Well,” Amani said awkwardly. “Costume parties are haram.”

“Oh, okay,” Katara looked down. 

Suki’s face contorted. “Oh.”

Amani smirked, looking around the table at her friend’s awkward faces. “Come on, that was a joke! You guys believe everything you’re told! I was studying and then I was too tired. Sorry.”

“Also, did you guys hear that Chan was making out with someone at the party?” Ty Lee smirked. 

Jin’s heart started pounding in her chest, trying to get out. 

“How come Chan is suddenly so interesting? Do you like him as well, Ty Lee?” Katara asked. 

Ty Lee, horrified, shook her head. 

Amani took a bite of her apple slice. “He has a girlfriend, dude!”

“And who did Chan make out with?” Suki asked. 

“No idea,” Ty Lee said. “No one knows.”

Jin stood up and pushed her chair in, walking away. Katara followers her with her eyes. 

“Hey!” She kissed Haru, who was walking in. Her friends noticed that it was a bit more passionate than she usually kissed him, but they kept their mouths shut. “I missed you.”

“We just had English together,” he was cut off by Jin kissing him again. 

“It’s been forever since then,” she threw her arms around around his neck. 

* * *

_ Monday November 9 (2.40PM) _

“Do you understand the task?” Jin asked one of the students she was tutoring. 

The girl nodded. “I’m good.”

Zuko walked over to them and looked over the girl’s paper. “Looks good.”

“Thanks!” The girl said 

“Let us know if you need anything,” Jin said. 

The girl nodded. 

Jin walked over to the wall and leaned against it, pulling out her phone to look at her texts with Haru. Zuko got some water and watched her. “Everything’s good between you two, right?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Jin bit her lip. 

“Is everything okay?” Zuko asked. 

Jin took a deep breath. “Can I tell you something?”

“Yes?”

“You have to swear that you’ll keep it to yourself, okay?” Jin said. 

“Yeah, okay,” Zuko took a sip of his water. 

Jin glared at him. “Really! No one can know about this.”

“I’m not telling anyone,” Zuko promised. 

“Recently, at the Halloween party,” Jin took a deep breath. “I…I made out with Chan.”

Zuko took a deep breath. “Shit.”

“I was mad at Haru because I thought there was something going on between him and Azula again,” Jin confessed. 

“Haru already told you her little hobby, right?”

“Yeah… but only afterwards,” her heart started racing. It felt like she couldn’t breathe. “Zuko, you cannot tell Haru.”

“Why are you telling me this then?” He asked. 

“I had to tell someone!” Jin sighed. “Otherwise I might burst.”

Zuko’s face was blank. “But it didn’t mean anything to you, right?”

“No. It didn’t,” Jin said. “I have to tell Haru, right?”

“To be honest, Jin, if I had a girlfriend and she made out with someone while she was drunk,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to know. It would only ruin the relationship. And you seem more in love than you were before. Maybe it was something good.”

“You really think so?” Jin asked. 

“He’s right,” the girl from before said. “Say nothing.”

Zuko leaned towards her. “You just have to make sure that Haru doesn’t find out about it. Especially not from that Chan guy.”

Jin nodded. 

* * *

_ Tuesday November 10 (1.40PM): It’s not up to you _

Jin, Ty Lee, and Katara were walking through the school parking lot, Ty Lee wearing a sweater that Jet gave her.

“How did you find out that Chan made out with someone at the party?” Jin asked. 

Ty Lee blinked a few times. “Jin?”

“What?”

“You like Chan!” Ty Lee claimed. 

Jin shook her head. “Bullshit.”

“Then why do you want to know who he made out with all the time?” She giggled. 

Jin bit her lip. “Whatever, forget it. I was just curious.”

“Well, somebody probably talked shit about Chan to diss him,” Ty Lee pulled out her phone. “Oh man, I know I shouldn’t text Jet.”

“Yes, you shouldn’t,” Katara agreed. 

She nodded. “Yes, but later he’ll think I don’t want him anymore because I didn’t text him.”

Katara threw her hand over Ty Lee’s shoulder. “How about you forget Jet and search for a new guy. Or for a change, not a guy at all?”

Ty Lee looked uncomfortable. “Ehh, Katara, I don’t like girls. I only like guys.”

She smiled. “You should just take a break overall.”

“Are you sure you’re not a lesbian?” Ty Kee asked Katara. 

“I’m not a lesbian,” Katara said. “I’m bisexual.”

“Then why are you still a virgin?” Ty Lee asked. “I mean you’re really pretty.”

Katara stopped walking. “So because I’m pretty and I’m bisexual I need to have sex?”

“Do you know what he said to me? That I have a really beautiful stomach. Isn’t that cute?” A girl said, walking past with her friend. 

Ty Lee stared at the two girls. 

“Ty Lee, it’s not your fault,” Katara grabbed her hand. 

“Jet is an idiot,” Jin said. 

“Everybody keeps saying that,  _ ‘it’s not you,’  _ blah, blah,blah. It’s not true. There’s something wrong with me.”

The girls hugged her as they kept walking. 

* * *

_ Wednesday November 11 (6.40PM): Random girl _

The girls were sitting in the courtyard on a table, Suki bouncing a ball and Amani reading a book. 

Ty Lee walked up to them. “I’ve had enough. I’m going to go to Jet and tell him what I think. I’m not some random girl he can bang once and then just ignore.”

“Yes!” Katara grinned. 

“I think Ty Lee shouldn’t do this,” Amani said. “I think you need to stay cool and above this, otherwise you just make yourself the victim. But it’s your choice.”

“No,” Katara said. “She’s a victim if she doesn’t fight back.”

“He’s coming,” Ty Lee said as he walked out the door with Longshot . 

“And what are you going to do?” Suki asked. 

Amani grabbed her hand. “Ty Lee, leave it! He’s not alone. They're going to make fun of you.”

“I’m doing it,” Ty Lee decided. “Hey Jet, wait up!”

The girls followed her as she walked directly up to him. Jet stopped walking. 

“If you think you can treat me like the other girls, then you’re wrong. I’m not just a girl… that you can just…” 

“Stop,” he said, and she did. “Take a deep breath.” She did. “What was your name again?”

“Ty Lee?” she answered. 

“Ty Lee, I think we’re having a bit of a communication problem. Probably my mistake…” he said. “You know why I didn’t text you?” She nodded. “Because you don’t matter to me, Ty Lee. Because you’re not worth it,” tears started filling the girl’s eyes. “Don’t start crying now.”

She ran off, but Amani caught her and started hugging her. She hugged back, burying her face into Amani’s neck. Katara glared at Jet. 

“How small and pathetic do you have to feel to be that mean to someone? And only to push your own ego?” Katara asked. “Did your mom not cuddle you enough? Or maybe a little too much? Or did your dad not watch your soccer games? Did you wet the bed until you were ten? What is your fucking problem? Why do you behave like a fucking cliché? You better figure it out, and start acting like a human being.”

Katara left with Jin behind her. Amani and Ty Lee left next. Then Suki flipped the boys off before following them. Jet stared at Katara, smirking a little.   


* * *

_ Wednesday November 11 (6.40PM): Marujana _

Jin woke up in bed, Haru beside her. He was still asleep, so she wrapped her arms around his back and kissed his shoulder. “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” he groaned back. 

She smiled. “We have to get up.”

Haru made a noise of protest. 

“We have to!”

He made another one. “Why is it daytime already? I don’t wanna go to school!”

He groaned into the mattress when Jin smiled. Her phone went off and she grabbed it. He also grabbed his. 

“It was mine,” she said. 

_ Jin: No one can know we kissed. It was a mistake. Don’t tell anyone.  _

He nodded. “By the way, I found out that there’s a study that proves the danger of cell phone radiation. So maybe we should turn our phones off during the night. Or put them away from our heads.”

“Mhm,” Jin said, not paying attention. 

_ Chan: My lips are sealed.  _

“What happened to me meeting your mom?” He asked, putting his pants on.

“You had your chance to meet her,” Jin said. “But you decided to smoke pot with Azula instead. You fumbled it up.”

“Ah fuck,” Haru pouted. “I wanted to meet your mom so badly. I would have even gluten down on my knees and asked for your hand.”

“Do you really think I would introduce my mom to a drug dealer?”

“What am I supposed to do?” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Society made me do it. Really… a boy from the streets like me, what can I do?”

He pulled his shirt on and put his hair in a bun. 

“Hm, okay, we’re gonna reschedule it. But if she finds out, she’d probably shoot you,” Jin said. 

Haru nodded. “Well yeah, that’s fair.”

“Or she’d buy something. She’s talking about how she’d like to try smoking again,” Jin smiled at him. 

Haru shrugged, putting on his shoes. “Not a problem at all! I could hook her up with something.”

“Stop it,” Jin threw a pillow at him. “Smoking weed is totally stupid.”

“Smoking weed is awesome!” Haru countered. 

Jin thought for a minute. “Nah, I’m awesome.”

“Uhh, I’m awesome,” he climbed onto the bed. 

Jin nodded, grinning. “We are.”

“We are awesome!” He kissed her and she pulled him close. 

“We need to go,” Jin said. 

“No.”

“We do!”

* * *

_ Wednesday November 11 (6.40PM): Marujana _

Haru and Jin were walking together across the courtyard, hand in hand. They got up to the building and stopped. 

“See you in English,” he smiled and kissed her. “I gotta go.”

“Just another kiss?” She asked and he kissed her. 

“I’ve been late too many times already.”

She laughed and pulled him closer with her scarf, kissing him. 

She noticed her friends taking a selfie. She photobombed them last minute they all laughed. 

“I can’t believe you just completely destroyed Jet last time,” Jin told Katara. 

“You fucked him up!” Suki grinned. “Him and his sorry ass.”

“Yes, it was amazing! Just incredible!” Amani agreed. 

“How are you?” Jin asked Ty Lee. 

“I’m good!” She claimed. “In fact, I’m entirely over Jet. More importantly, the rumors about Chan are true.”

“What rumors?” Amani asked. 

“That me made out with someone at the party.”

“Okay,” Jin muttered, heartbeat rising and anxiety building in her chest. 

“And apparently his girlfriend found out and is pissed off,” Ty Lee said. 

Amani heard footsteps and turned around. “Er, guys, they’re coming straight towards us, aren’t they?”

“You’re a fucking bitch!” On Ji pulled Jin forward and punched her in the face. 

“What’s wrong with you?!” Amani shouted at her, pulling her away from Jin. She pushed Amani away and jumped onto Katara, who was blocking Jin. The fight continued, mostly being Jin and her friends trying to push On Ji and her friends away. One girl grabbed Suki’s hair and started pulling it. 

“HEY! What’s going on here?” The principal stormed towards them. 

“Are you okay?” Suki asked Jin. 

“Did they completely lose their minds?” Katara said while watching the girls walk away. 

Jin was vaguely aware of her friends trying to comfort her, but she couldn’t hear anything. She touched her cheek.

* * *

_ Wednesday November 11 (11.32AM): Pick Up _

Jin tried calling Haru but he didn’t pick up. She called again. And again. And again. 

“This is the mailbox of Haru Tán. Please leave a message.”

“Haru, please pick up,” Jin begged. “I don’t know why I did that. I’m not interested in Chan, I swear. I love you. Please call me back.”

She ended the call and stared at the phone in her hands. She heard a knock at her window and unlocked it when she saw that it was Zuko. “Hi.”

“Hey,” he said, hopping in. He closed and locked the window behind him, then hugged Jin. 

“Were you at Haru’s place?” She asked him. 

He nodded. “Yes.”

“What did he say?”

Zuko looked away. “We didn’t talk about it.”

“What?” Jin’s anxiety started picking up. “He didn’t say anything about me?”

“Jin, what do you want to hear?” Zuko asked, sitting on her bed. “Of course he’s hurt.”

“But he has to talk to me. I need to explain everything to him,” her breaths came raggedly as she started pacing. 

“He needs some time right now,” he said. 

Jin took a seat next to him, mind going blank. “Who told him?”

Zuko shifted uncomfortably. “I dunno, I mean the whole school knew after, like, twenty minutes.”

“Yeah, but someone must have told him.”

“Ruon-Jian told him,” he finally confessed. 

“What?” Jin inhaled. “Why didn’t he come to me first?”

“Ruon-Jian is Haru’s friend, not yours.”

Jin’s phone received a notification and she looked at it. 

**Haru: I can’t talk to you right now. Please stop calling me.**

Jin started sobbing uncontrollably. Zuko wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close to him. He started stroking her hair. 

* * *

_ Friday November 13 (1.38PM) _

Jin was scribbling on a piece of paper, wearing sunglasses. She noticed Haru walking with Ruan-Jiang outside and quickly took them off. She stared at him absentmindedly. 

“Jin,” Ty Lee said, breaking her out of it. “Is it actually true that you cried on Chan’s girlfriend’s shoulder about Haru right after you made out with him?”

Jin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “How often are you going to ask? I didn’t know he had a girlfriend!”

“You need to explain that at school, because right now everyone is calling you a slut,” Ty Lee went back to her work. 

Katara looked up. She saw the look on Jin’s face and hugged her. “Ty Lee, stop it.”

“I’m just telling the truth!” Ty Lee argued. 

“Jin, it doesn’t matter what other people think,” Katara told her. “You’re our friend, and we’re gonna stick up for you.”

Suddenly, Azula walked through the door and took notice of the girls. She smirked. “Once a slut, always a slut, right?”

Jin wiped away her tears. “You don’t even know what happened.”

“I can imagine, though,” Azula glared at her. 

“Can you shut up?” Katara interjected. 

“Sweet, now you’re defending her,” Azula pulled out a chair. “But Jin will continue to piss on your entire life. Eventually it’ll stop being so charming.”

“Do us a favor and leave!” Katara raised her voice. 

Azula picked up her bag, gave one last smile, rolled her eyes, and left. 

“What did she mean by that?” Ty Lee asked. 

Jin shook her head. “Nothing. She just wants to stir up drama.”

“Were you two friends?” She asked. 

“Yeah. A long time ago,” Jin started packing up her things. “I need to leave. My mom’s home this week.”

She stood up and left. 

* * *

_ Friday November 13 (2:02PM) _

Jin arrived home, and closed the door behind her as she texted Zuko. 

**Jin: When will Haru be ready to talk to me?**

**Zuko: Idk**

**Zuko: He’s still just as mad**

**Jin: What has he been saying?**

**Zuko: Idk**

**Zuko: He doesn’t talk about you**

**Jin: Then how do you know he’s still upset?**

Jin put her phone away when she noticed her mom in the kitchen. “Hey mom!”

“Hey sweetie,” she frowned slightly. “The school called.”

Jin could feel her heart in her throat. “It wasn’t my fault. That girl just—came at me.”

Her mother’s eyes widened. “You got into a fight?”

“Yes… well, no,” Jin bit her lip. “I thought that’s why the school called.”

“No, it’s because of your grades,” her mother said. 

Jin closed her eyes and started walking to her room. “Mom, I’m tired.”

“Jin, wait a second,” she grabbed her wrist and made her sit down at the dining room table. “What’s going on?”

Jin didn’t respond, so her mother gently grabbed her hands and smiled at her. Jin started crying. “Everything is just  _ crap.” _

Her mother sat down next to her. “Is the whole world being mean to you?”

Jin nodded. “Yeah, the world wants to end me.”

Her mother laughed slightly. 

“Haru broke up with me,” she said. 

Her mother grew confused. “Your boyfriend is called Haru too? But it’s not… that Haru, right?”

Jin closed her eyes. “Yes, it’s that Haru.”

“Crap,” her mother gave her a sympathetic look. 

“I know…” she murmured, laying her head on her mom’s shoulder. 


End file.
